The Present is All We Have
by AnnCarter
Summary: Post "The Way We Were", Charlie found out Dawn couldn't have a baby. Knowing her, he's coming to see her the next morning.


_The show belongs to CTV and all that. I own nothing._

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"Dawn."

She immediately turned around, startled. She didn't expect to see anyone there this early in the morning, least of all her ex-husband, who was supposed to have been back home after his busy night shift. Trying to pretend he didn't scare her to death, she straightened her white coat and smiled at him.

"Charlie. Good morning."

He looked at her quietly for a moment before walking into her office and closing the door behind him. She frowned slightly, immediately turning somewhat worried. Charlie only did that when he had something important – and private – to say.

"What did we talk about the other night?"

She blinked in surprise. "What?"

He walked towards her before stopping an inch away. His voice was patient when he replied, "That night, after that snake got Vallenwe'en, what did we talk about? What did I tell you?"

Still somewhat confused, she mumbled, "What exactly are you talking about?"

"I told you to stop it. Stop pushing away the people who love you." He leaned closer, "Stop pushing _me_ away."

"Charlie…"

He took a step back, his hands in his pockets. "I ran into Katz last night." She bit her lower lip, already knowing what he was going to say. "She asked if we're considering a donation. I asked her why."

"She told you." Her voice was quiet.

"Why didn't you just tell me?" His voice was soft, but deep down in his baby blue eyes she could tell he was hurt. "Why didn't you just say you can't have a baby anymore, instead of going all the way around?"

"Because it doesn't matter." She took a deep breath. "Charlie, the reason we broke up-"

"This has nothing to do with it." He cut her off quietly. "Dawn, I know you're afraid of getting hurt. I know you're afraid of being too close to people; of them knowing enough about you to hurt you. But I'm not-"

"What I said was the truth. I see the way you look at her." She looked away, trying not to cry until he leaves. "I saw the way you looked at her last night. I know you think you want this, but if you're going to have a baby, do it with the woman you love."

"Why else would I be here?" His voice was soft once again.

She looked up at him immediately. "Charlie-"

"I can't tell you I'm over Alex." He continued. "I'm not. I don't know if I ever will be. But…" He stepped back closer to her, "Nothing that's happened in the past year felt as right as it felt to kiss you that night."

"What happened to the Charlie who told me that it's him and Alex?" She asked softly.

"I don't know," He admitted. "But maybe it was for the best that she turned down my proposal. Maybe it was a good thing that the car ran into our taxi. Maybe it's even a positive thing that you can't have a baby."

"You want a baby. _I_ want a baby."

"Right now, the only thing I want is you." His hands found hers. "When you started talking about having a baby, I thought maybe it was too soon. We'd just gotten back together. I want to have kids, but this was moving fast. Really fast. Too fast." He looked down for a moment before his eyes met hers again. "I think with all the excitement about having a baby and making plans for the future, we forgot to enjoy the only thing we have – the present."

"I don't know…" She looked away.

His hands left hers and gently cupped her face, forcing her to look back at him. "I think you _do_ know. And I think you're afraid. But I think that maybe, if we worked on these little problems, just maybe, we can do this."

Tears shining in her eyes, she leaned forward and kissed him gently, her lips just brushing against his. He smiled and kissed her, pulling her closer. She smiled as he did, her hands already traveling over his chest. He was about to take her coat off when her phone vibrated loudly, telling them she was paged somewhere.

Smiling, she pulled back. "I will see you later, Doctor Harris."

He returned her a smile. "I'll make sure that you will, Doctor Bell," He replied, looking completely serious, before leaving her alone in her office.


End file.
